And the things that inspire me, usually to do one of the two things above.

When Frank Herbert’s megalomaniacal (and yet perversely entertaining) Baron Vladimir Harkonnen says the words that gave this, my first post, its title, he wasn’t saying anything that House Atreides, the heroes of “Dune,” didn’t know.

It was the thing that made the universe work, and it was also the thing that was almost impossible to grasp — and hang onto. Trying to control it was to invite danger, and it almost caused the downfall of the venerable House with all the protagonists, Atreides.

In this universe I belong to, “sci fi/fantasy,” one I’ve always been in since I was old enough to pick up a pen and a book, I’ve come to understand what that spice is — and it’s you, dear readers.

So here I am, holding out my hands in this desert of Arrakis we call the internet, hoping to grasp onto some of it — as I attempt to cross that most difficult and dangerous of thresholds that we writers call “trying to get published.”

I’ve always loved to write, be it for the causes I care about or for the stories in my head, but when it comes to stories, I’ve always been afraid of that part of myself — until the past year or so, when I’ve been able to work up the courage to go from occasional dabbler to serious practitioner.

I still haven’t crossed the threshold yet, of being published in a professional market, but have had some near misses with my short fiction. And I know… if I keep at it, keep plugging away, keep scratching like Paul Atreides in becoming Muad’Dib… that it will happen, and the internet spice will all be mine!

But, in the meantime, I’lI invite you to pull up a chair, grab a cup of java, and enjoy yourself with my occasional posts on writing, what I’ve learned or am learning about the publishing process, the stories I’m reading or that have inspired me, and no doubt some cat videos and the occasional expression of anguish at yet another rejection.

I’ll try to mix short and funny posts with more serious, thoughtful ones, and hopefully build something worthy of some people’s time — perhaps yours, if I’m lucky.